Markets Daily: Europe is back

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Markets Snapshot S&P 500 Futures 5,394 -0.63% Nasdaq 100 Futures 18,714.75 -1.29% US 10-Year Treasury Yield 4.339% +0.006 Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index 1,229.11 -0.42% Gold 3,303.56 +2.25% Market data as of 06:06 am EST. View or Create your Watchlist Market data may be delayed depending on provider agreements.

Five things you need to know

Technology stocks fell as new US restrictions on the export of Nvidia chips to China and a disappointing report from chip-equipment maker ASML fanned trade-war concerns. The slump wiped out $155 billion in market value for the two companies alone. China wants to see steps from the Trump administration before it agrees to trade talks, including showing more respect by reining in disparaging remarks by officials, according to a person familiar with the Chinese government's thinking. US stock futures pared their drop after that China scoop, though they're still pointing to a lower open due to the tech selloff. The dollar fell to a fresh six-month low and investors are still looking for havens: Gold hit a record and the Swiss franc rallied. The US launched a probe into the need for tariffs on critical minerals, adding to the trade war that has targeted key sectors of the global economy.  USBancorp, Commerce Bancshares and Citizens Financial report earnings, along with insurers Travelers and Progressive and drugmaker Abbott Labs. Heineken rallied in Amsterdam after the brewer reported a smaller-than-expected drop in volumes.

Europe awakens

America's loss is proving to be Europe's gain in financial markets.  The euro is the strongest in three years. German 10-year bonds last week beat Treasuries by the most ever. And while European shares have been knocked by the trade war, they're turning out to be far more resilient than American ones. It's the result of a push-pull dynamic, as investors reject the Trump administration's unpredictable and damaging trade policies that are undermining years of US exceptionalism. And where European markets were once seen as something of a backwater, hamstrung by the region's struggle to generate meaningful growth, Germany's recent decision to spend billions of euros on infrastructure and defense is transforming the long-term outlook.  "There's this feeling that Europe is just a museum; well, the museum is now coming to life," said Catherine Braganza at Insight Investment in London.  It's a remarkable, rapid turnaround from just six months ago, when the US's hot AI stocks, the ascendant dollar and an imminent wave of tax cuts and deregulation dominated conversation. Last week, the dollar, US Treasuries and equities were all falling in tandem, a pattern more typically associated with emerging markets rather than the world's largest economy. A Bank of America global fund manager survey this week found a record number of respondents intend to cut exposure to US stocks. To be sure, 20% trade tariffs are bad news for the EU, and a Bloomberg News report Tuesday suggests few will be lifted for good once the 90-day respite period is over. A US recession, increasingly incorporated into analysts' forecasts, would inevitably drag the rest of the world down with it.  But Europe's markets have a lot going for them, a fact that's not lost on some of the biggest names in finance. Goldman Sachs sees the euro pushing higher to $1.20, extending a red-hot rise from $1.01 just 10 weeks ago. Citigroup this week downgraded US equities to neutral while staying positive on Europe. And Vanguard International likes short-dated bonds that stand to gain as the European Central Bank cuts interest rates further.  —Alice Gledhill

On the move

United Airlines rises 5% in premarket trading. The US carrier took the unusual step of offering not one but two possible earnings scenarios, saying its 2025 outlook remains achievable, but also warning that a recession could nearly halve its profit forecast. Delta Air Lines, Southwest and American are also moving higher.  The ASML earnings and the ban on Nvidia selling its H20 chip in China weighed on other semiconductor-related companies: AMD (-7.4%), Broadcom (-5%), Micron (-4.5%), Marvell Technology (-4.2%). Among chip-equipment makers: ASMI (-2.2%), BE Semiconductor (-3.9%), VAT (-4.7%), Technoprobe (-4.5%). Interactive Brokers falls 9.1%. The electronic brokerage firm's first-quarter earnings fell short of expectations on higher expenses and lower-than-estimated interest income. —Subrat Patnaik

Buying the dip

Beleaguered stock bulls are getting an encouraging sign from the people who know the companies best. Corporate insiders scooped up shares of their own companies at the fastest pace in 16 months as the S&P 500 sank in March, and they kept buying at an elevated clip as the rout accelerated this month in the wake of Donald Trump's global tariff rollout. Some 180 corporate insiders purchased their own stock in the first two weeks of April, data compiled by the Washington Service show. This has tipped the buy/sell ratio to 0.40, keeping it near the highest level since late 2023. While executives often buy stock for reasons unrelated to market performance, the uptick suggests a confidence in their companies that's reassuring to investors who've been battered by the weeks-long selloff. "This is a positive sign," said Matt Lloyd, chief investment strategist at Advisors Asset Management. "Investors are still mired in a negative feedback loop, given trade and economic uncertainty. So it's pivotal for this trend to continue as the stock market attempts to get its sea legs." — Jessica Menton

Word from Main Street "I'm looking in the couch cushions for more to invest." Craig Sutton Consultant in the Fort Lauderdale, Florida, area who's adding to his family's ETF investments  Click here to read more about individual investors buying the dip in US stocks.

One number to start your day 283% Gain in Salem Media shares after Donald Trump Jr. and his wife took a stake in the right-wing Christian radio network.

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